[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 33 (Tuesday, March 16, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E367]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 TRIBUTE TO MS. FLORIS INGRAHAM JOHNSON

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                         HON. KENDRICK B. MEEK

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 16, 2004

  Mr. MEEK of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor Ms. Floris Ingraham 
Johhson, who celebrated her centennial birthday on Monday, March 15, 
2004.
  Born in 1904 to the late Eldred and Helena Moss on Governor's Harbor-
Eleuthera, The Bahamas, Ms. Johnson will be feted during ceremonies 
this Sunday at the Ebenezer United Methodist Church in my District. The 
Rev. Dr. Jimmie L. Brown, the distinguished Pastor, will lead his 
congregation in paying this unprecedented tribute to our centenarian 
celebrant.
  I would like to join the family, relatives and friends of Ms. Johnson 
toward reserving the utmost respect and genuine admiration for her 100 
years of living, working and serving the less fortunate of our 
community. In fact, she worked to take care of the elderly until she 
was 83 years old. It is my understanding that she was genuinely 
inspired to focus her vocation of service to the elderly by a genuine 
devotion to her Christian stewardship. She joyfully welcomes the 
challenge of each day, abiding by her favorite Scripture passage: 
``This is the day which the Lord has made. Rejoice and be glad!'' This 
is the simple recipe of good living with which she manages to define 
every passing day by looking at it as an opportunity to perform yet 
another work of love and another work of compassion for those yearning 
to see God's design in their lives.
  Ms. Johnson's quest for the quiet and dignified life is remarkably 
characterized by her passion for the simple things in God's wonderful 
world of creation--beautifying her surroundings with the planting of 
flowers, especially roses, and embellishing her home with varied knick-
knacks she has picked up from nearby nickel-and-dime stores. She has 
also devoted countless days in defining the longevity of her life by 
volunteering for the Feed the Hungry in Africa organization and by 
working with the Salvation Army and the Red Cross.
  Although she immensely enjoyed independent living until she was 97 
years old, she is now a resident of the Franco Nursing Home where she 
is genuinely loved and respected by her fellow residents and the 
nursing staff. Indeed, she is uniquely blessed in that she never had to 
suffer any sick day in her life with ``. . . no pains, no aches--just 
old age.''
  I join the Rev. Dr. Jimmie L. Brown this Sunday as he leads the 
congregation of Ebenezer United Methodist Church in thanking God for 
the blessings He has bountifully given to our birthday centenarian, Ms. 
Floris Ingraham Johnson. We are comforted by her exemplary life of 
simplicity and devotion, and it is this legacy that she bequeaths to 
us, and for which we will honor her.
  Happy centennial birthday, Ms. Johnson, and God bless and love you!

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